Peru has awarded a consortium of companies including Northrop Grumman, Bumar of Poland, and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems a contract worth $140 million (€106 million) to upgrade the country’s air defences.

The deal includes the supply of two Northrop Grumman AN/TPS-78 400km (215nm) air surveillance radars, an unknown number of Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Spyder, plus six Bumar Poprad, SHORAD systems.

ChainHomeHigh reported in March that the country had announced plans to purchase up to $160 million (€121 million) of air defence equipment. The country’s air defences are in need of major modernisation given that they currently include 9K310 Igla-1 (NATO reporting name ‘SA-16 Gimlet’) and Thales Javelin Man-Portable Air Defence Systems.

Deliveries of Peru’s new air defence systems are expected to be completed by 2014. The country has experienced narcotics trafficking using light aircraft, and the new systems will provide an improvement to the country’s ability to detect and intercept such flights.